Hi all General point of information - The following item had been posted to this list awhile back (I'm sorry, but I don't remember who posted it at the time). Anyhow, I was wondering if it would work, so I sent it on to a cardiologist friend of mine. His response follows the original post. Joan Let's say it's 6:17 p.m. and you're driving home (alone of course) after an unusually hard day on the job. Not only was the work load extraordinarily heavy, you also had a disagreement with your boss, and no matter how hard you tried he just wouldn't see your side of the situation. You're really upset and the more you think about it the more uptight you become. All of a sudden you start experiencing severe pain in your chest that starts to radiate out into your arm and up into your jaw. You are only about five miles from the hospital nearest your home, unfortunately you don't know if you'll be able to make it that far. What can you do? You've been trained in CPR but the guy that taught the course neglected to tell you how to perform it on yourself......... HOW TO SURVIVE A HEART ATTACK WHEN ALONE Many people are alone when they suffer a heart attack, what can you do? Without help a person whose heart stops beating properly begins to feel faint and has about 10 seconds left before losing consciousness. However, these victims can help themselves by coughing repeatedly and very vigorously. A deep breath should be taken before each cough, and the cough must be deep and prolonged, as when producing sputum from deep inside the chest. A breath and a cough must be repeated about every two seconds without let up until help arrives, or until the heart is felt to be beating normally again. Deep breaths get oxygen into the lungs and coughing movements squeeze the heart and keep the blood circulating. The squeezing pressure on the heart also helps it regain normal rhythm. In this way, heart attack victims can get to a phone and, between breaths, call for help. You'll be giving yourself CPR with this technique. The above was taken from Health Cares, Rochester General Hospital via Chapter 240s newsletter AND THE BEAT GOES ON... (reprint from The Mended Hearts, Inc. publication, Heart Response) * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * ** * * It may work but call 911 first. Sometimes during a heart attack an arrhythmia may lead to loss of consciousness which would make this maneuver impossible. Thus -- 911 first. I would only recommend doing this maneuver if you are getting lightheaded in which case you should do it lying down. *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
RE "auto CPR" - I agree with the person who wrote that 911 should be phoned first. It's impossible to argue with Rochester General Hospital, and it's true that the technique described is an accepted one, the physiologic explanation having some logic. However - my strong suspicion is that **for heart attack** it works mainly by giving the victim something to do while nature takes its course. The technique is of most use during dysrythmia - irregular heart rhythm - and here it may actually help the heart revert to normal rhythm. It is most likely to help in episodes of intermittent atrial fibrillation, a particular type of heart rhythm disturbance, and people who have such episodes are often taught to use the technique (which doesn't always help even in this situation). But if the real problem is dying heart muscle due to inadequate blood flow to that heart muscle, self-coughing isn't likely to do much. If it ever happens to me, I hope I'll either get to the nearest phone, or if that's impossible, pull over to the side of the road, lie down, and wait it out. Fortunately for all of us, most of these first episodes of severe chest pain are **not** heart attacks, but are something less than that, such as "angina", or else trapped gas, or else acid regurgitating back into the swallowing tube (esophagus). Angina, or "coronary spasm" is like a charlie horse of the heart muscle; pain occurs and can be severe, but muscle doesn't die and the pain subsides. After that first episode, see your cardiologist ASAP and be sure you get the necessary tests. Then start taking half an aspiring a day (if she/he recommends it) and carry nitroglycerine tablets. That's much more likely to help. Bill Hansen Ithaca NY *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
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